Lost Hearts
by snowydragon1776
Summary: An artifact mystery precipitates HG's return.
1. Chapter 1

**Lost Hearts**

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing.

Helena sealed yet another box up before heading to the post office. This was the sixth package in two months.

"Would you like delivery confirmation on this, Emily?" Jim smiled over his glasses, from behind the counter.

"Yes, I think I should," Helena smiled at him.

"You got it, that'll be $15.27." Jim tapped a few buttons on his register screen. Helena just prayed the package got there safely.

Helena checked her watch as she climbed into her SUV; time to pick up Adelaide from school.

* * *

"She sent another one?!" Artie inquired as he felt the air behind him move.

"You are getting too good at that," Mrs. Frederic replied without missing a beat.

"Well, I have been working here since the Civil War," Artie joked.

Mrs. Frederic merely raised her eyebrow and handed the box to Artie.

Artie opened it and gasped, "Shakespeare's ink blotter, where did she find it?" He immediately turned to typing on the Warehouse computer.

"You know she did not find it, it came to her," Mrs. Frederic interjected un-phased by Artie's excitement.

Suddenly, Artie stopped and turned in his chair, "You're right, Helena said they've been coming to her. Who would possibly be able to get these artifacts? Some have been missing for…."

"Artie," Mrs. Frederic gently interrupted him, "I think we need to give her a push, don't you?"

Artie looked at her for a moment, sighed, and nodded his head in agreement. "Yes, we need her back, we always have."

Mrs. Frederic nodded and Artie half turned to look at the newly returned artifact.

"I have a feeling this is going to be big and not in a good way," Artie continued. When he refocused on Mrs. Frederic she was already gone.

* * *

Helena was making dinner when the doorbell rang. She quickly dried her hands with the towel on her shoulder. "Be right there," she called moving down the hallway to the front door.

She was not expecting anyone and her body was tense, ready for anything. Ever since the incident where she had been forced to call Myka she was prepared for the worst.

Helena let out a breath before opening the front door, "Hello…" she started, but no one was there.

"Agent Wells, we need to talk," Mrs. Frederic spoke from the living room couch.

Helena closed the front door and calmly turned around, "I'm not an agent."

Mrs. Frederic carefully raised her eyebrow as Helena sat in the chair next to the couch. "I'm afraid I have to disagree, you have been returning artifacts to us." Helena attempted to interrupt but Mrs. Frederic held up her hand. "Furthermore, why would a suburban housewife be hiding a switchblade in her back pocket to open the door," Mrs. Frederic ended, sitting back and waiting for Helena to respond.

Helena's mouth opened and closed a few times. She, the writer, was at a loss for words. "One can never be too prepared," was all she was able to come up with.

Mrs. Frederic kept looking at Helena and then she finally started, "I know you've been trying to heal, that you are trying to have a more normal life. I admire you for trying, especially after all that you have been through." Mrs. Frederic watched Helena stare at her hands. "But are you sure there isn't something missing in your life?" Helena took a sharp breath, but said nothing.

They sat in silence for a while. Mrs. Frederic was not going to make this easy for her because life-changing decisions were never easy.

"I think you are denying who you are, Agent Wells," Mrs. Frederic pressed gently, "you're the best agent the Warehouse has ever had and I think you need the Warehouse as much as she needs you."

Helena sighed and looked out the window. She ran a hand through her hair and finally spoke, "To be honest, I have been getting a bit bored here. Don't get me wrong, I care for Adelaide and have enjoyed learning to cook, but I'm afraid I'm still HG Wells even if I now know how to make omelets and pasta. If I didn't know any better, it felt like the artifacts were finding me for a reason. Did you get them all?"

"We did, but we are not sure where they have been coming from."

"Really? I thought the Warehouse was somehow sending them to me, sending me a message," Helena replied, leaning forward as she spoke.

"We thought that as well, at first, but the artifacts have either been lost for decades or we did not know of them before you sent them to us," Mrs. Frederic replied.

"How can that be?" Helena asked both intrigued and scared by this development.

"We're not sure, that is part of the reason I have come here. We need help figuring this one out and I have a feeling it's not going to be a simple mystery."

"Part of the reason?" Helena inquired, worried. "Is something wrong at the Warehouse or at the Bed and Breakfast?" Helena rushed forward, her hand landing on Mrs. Frederic's.

Mrs. Frederic stood up and straightened her jacket, "I think you know the other reason I would come to speak with you." Mrs. Frederic moved around the table.

"What do you mean by that?" Helena stood up as well.

"I think you know," was the reply and with that Mrs. Frederic vanished.

Helena rubbed her hands together, the scared look clear on her face.

* * *

Myka never wanted to go to South America again. The heat was terrible. The flight was way too long. Pete was even more insufferable if that was possible. Myka blamed the food and women. He couldn't seem to control himself.

She was happy to be home. Ready for a shower and curling up with a book. Their family may be small and weird and their home a quirky unfathomable place, but it was theirs. She really couldn't imagine living anywhere else. The Warehouse was here. Her family was here.

Myka went about her routine nearly content. There was really only one thing, one person missing, but she knew it unlikely that they would cross paths again. So she grabbed her well-worn copy of _The Lord of the Rings_ and a whiskey before climbing onto the window seat, hoping Tolkien's words would pull her into a calming space.

* * *

"Nate, thank you for everything," Helena said as they stood in the driveway.

"Thank you," he said quietly. They both look over at Adelaide who was sweeping the garage or at least appearing to do so, giving Nate and Helena a moment to talk.

"We both knew it wasn't forever, but I hope it helped you as much as it helped me," Nate continued.

Helena nodded and gave him a hug. When they parted she waved Adelaide over, they experienced their long goodbye the night before with promises to stay in touch and visit, of course. Helena had been worried that Adelaide would be extremely upset, but the smart, precocious child surprised her yet again.

_Helena had come to stand in Adelaide's doorway the night before during story time. _

"_You're going, aren't you?"_

_Helena nodded gently and went to sit next to the girl, "I have to, it's important."_

_Adelaide had fallen forward into her arms, "I understand, I think you need to go on more adventures, you need to keep the world safe," she finished snuggling into Helena. _

"_I guess you could say it's my calling, hmmm," Helena mumbled into Adelaide's hair. _

_Adelaide nodded vigorously as she opened up a volume of Alice in Wonderland for Helena to read to her. _

_Helena could not help but smile as they settled into reading, and she stayed with Adelaide all night. _

_Perhaps she was meant to keep the world safe, but did that mean she had to sacrifice having some sort of life outside of adventures? Helena realized she owed it to herself to find out. She hoped Myka and the others would forgive her for essentially going walkabout without telling them or even saying goodbye_.

"I'm going to miss you my dear," Helena said, kneeling down to give Adelaide a strong hug as she skipped over from the garage.

"I'm going to miss you too, but I know you will be back," Adelaide grinned as they pulled apart. Helena grinned back before climbing into her car and heading back toward the Warehouse, endless wonder, and hopefully something else entirely.


	2. Chapter 2

**Lost Hearts**

**Chapter Two**

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing

**Note: **Elisa Lawton is the name I have created for Regent #2, who was featured in the Warehouse 13 episode "Breakdown."

Special thanks to my beta for being awesome. 

* * *

"The Regents meet here?!" Deb's jaw dropped as she looked at the water park around her. Deborah Stanley was usually professional, but she could not hide her shock or hold back her comment.

"No, we never meet the same place twice," Elisa Lawton explained as Mr. Kosan waved them over to the tallest water slide.

"I really hope we are not going down that?" Deb whispered as she took her heels off, not wanting to get them wet.

Deb watched as Mr. Kosan reached behind the bottom of the slide. The sound of a knob turning filled the air. Then the water stopped flowing and the pool was started to drain.

"Where are we going?" Deb couldn't help but ask, her long dark hair flowing behind her.

"The meeting room," Mr. Kosan replied as he stepped into the pool and bent over to grab the drain plug.

"We can't very well stand in the open and talk," Elisa pointed out, "A bunch of people in suits and skirts talking at a water park would look odd." Deb starred at her blankly as Elisa's eyebrow rose up her forehead.

"Here we are ladies, let me give you a hand down," Kosan smiled as he held the hatch open for them.

* * *

"Wow," Deb mumbled as she followed Elisa down the hatch that led to a huge conference room under the pool.

"Welcome," Jane said from the other end of the huge conference table, a screen on behind her displaying information that Deb could not quite make out.

"How are you Jane?" Elisa asked, her dreads swaying as she tilted her head in respect to Jane, "I haven't seen you in ages."

"I'm well," Jane smiled, her suit impeccably smooth and crisp, "although I'd feel better if we knew where these artifacts are coming from."

"Agreed," Kosan said as he locked the hatch and hit a button. Deb could not help but stare.

"It refills the pool," Kosan smiled as he ushered them to join the table that was full of what regents were left after Skyes' attacks on the Warehouse and Regents.

"I feel like I'm in the CIA," Deb whispered to Elisa, the woman who had been training her in the ways of the Regents and the Warehouse.

"Oh, we're much more fun than them," Jane grinned some how able to hear from across the room. Deb watched the screen that was behind Jane. It seemed to be constantly displaying more information.

"The Regents were summoned to order because Mrs. Frederic has called in Agent Wells," Kosan began as he poured himself a cup of tea before sitting down to Jane's left.

There was a universal gasp throughout the crowd.

"What?!" Elisa responded. "You've got to be joking."

"No, I am not," Kosan calmly replied. "The packages have been coming to her…"

"And we don't know why," Jane added. "We need her back."

"Why? She caused a lot of damage to the Warehouse and its agents," Elisa replied, more curious than angry.

"Agreed," Kosan nodded, "but the Warehouse also chose her. In addition, she asked to be bronzed and that is telling even with what occurred in Yellowstone. I feel Agent Wells was perhaps meant to travel through time."

The room was silent as everyone digested this idea.

"Do you feel she is stable enough to go back in the field and to deal with this new problem?" a regent asked.

Kosan met Jane's eyes and then took a long sip of his tea. "She handled quite a few cases after the Sykes incident, including hiding the Astrolabe when we requested it of her. I think that is proof enough she is ready to be an active agent again."

"Aren't there other things we should be worrying about when it comes to Agent Wells?" the same regent inquired.

"There are things we have to worry about with all of our agents, that just goes with the job and life," was Kosan's quick reply.

He looked around the table at each Regent. It was time to decide Agent Wells' fate once again. Then the more important issue needed to be discussed. Mr. Kosan tried not to look at the information screen it was overwhelming.

* * *

"Mrs. Frederic, thank you for meeting us," Kosan waved as Mrs. Frederic entered the Costco near the food stand. Mrs. Frederic nodded in reply. As always, not a hair, finger nail, or button was out of place. "It has been decided that Agent Wells will once again be an active agent, please inform the Warehouse team."

"She is on her way as we speak. She should arrive at the Bed and Breakfast this evening," Mrs. Frederic replied, moving to leave.

"You will not be reprimanded for your actions, because we trust you and the Warehouse to know what is needed," Kosan continued while putting mustard on his hot dog, "but next time some warning would be appreciated."

"Of course," Mrs. Frederic inclined her head.

"Mrs. Frederic, I was wondering if I could bring Ms. Stanley for a more detailed tour of the Warehouse," Elisa interjected before everyone flew off to get work done.

"Ah, yes," Kosan mumbled around his bit of hot dog, "I am sorry for not introducing you. Mrs. Frederic, y, , ou know of Ms. Lawton I believe. She is showing Ms. Stanley the ropes of being a new Regent. She is getting a crash course due to recent events and emerging concerns."

"Pleased to meet you," Deb jumped in eagerly. Mrs. Frederic returned the gesture remembering that Pete and Myka had encountered this woman in Indiana.

"The same," Mrs. Frederic said. She turned with an elegant flourish and walked toward the store exit. "Well, don't dawdle, we only have so much time to show you Endless Wonder, before work gets thrown into the mix." Elisa and Deb immediately hustled after Mrs. Frederic.

Kosan just smiled into his hot dog. No one exited like Mrs. Frederic.

* * *

Helena watched the numbers rise on the gas meter while tapping the back of her phone. To call, text, or not? She couldn't make up her mind. It would seem rather rude to just show up in a "here I am" way. On the other hand, communicating at this point would seem almost as abrupt since she was halfway to the Warehouse.

Buzz. Buzz.

Helena took a small jump before she looked down at her phone screen, her long silky hair hiding her face from view.

"I hope the drive is going well ~Adelaide," is what the text on her screen said although it was Nate's number. Helena let out a breath she had been holding and answered the text with a smile, "Halfway there, sweet girl."

Helena had never been more relieved in her life. Getting the text confirmed for her the best thing to do would be to talk to Myka in person first. She would understand that sometimes the Warehouse finds you…eventually, probably after some anger.

* * *

"There has to be a connection," Artie mumbled as he again went through the list of artifacts the HG had sent to him. It hadn't come to him yet, but it would. He had not told the team about where these artifacts came from because they had already been snagged and bagged. The tagging was yet to be tackled. There were also no obvious signs of danger from them. Yet something was off about the entire situation.

Artie scratched his beard as he rose from his chair to check on some maps, when his Farnsworth buzzed. He turned back to his desk. "Yes?" he inquired, leaning down so his face was visible.

"Agent Nielsen, I have some guests for you," Mrs. Frederic stated while whileensuring that Artie could see the two women behind him. Artie did a great job of hiding his surprise.

"I'll be right out," he replied before turning the Farnsworth off and heading out of the Umbilicus to meet his "guests."

"Thank you, Artie," Mrs. Frederic said, shading her eyes from the sun as Artie came out of the Warehouse entrance. "This is Ms. Lawton and Ms. Stanley, and they are here for a tour of the Warehouse."

"Welcome to the home of endless wonder," Artie smiled as he shook both women's hands.

"Thank you, Mr. Nielsen, it's an honor to meet you," Deb excitedly replied, trying not to stare at the familiar entrance of the Warehouse.

"Ms. Stanley is a new regent and I need to show her around," Elisa explained as they moved toward the Warehouse. "Thank you for your time and it's nice to see you under more pleasant circumstances," Elisa finished and then grinned when Artie did a double take at her.

Artie pushed up his glasses, "Ah, yes, we met in the…"

"Diner, yes," Elisa finished as they all walked through the Umbilicus and into the Warehouse.

* * *

Helena rang the doorbell. She knew Leena –sadly- was no longer in this world, so it felt weird just walking into the B&B.

She did not wait very long. "Hello," Abigail said when she opened the door, "How can I help you?"

"I am here about a room," Helena replied not sure who this person was.

"I'm sorry, we don't have any rooms available, but perhaps you could try the inn on the other side of town," Abigail replied, while holding the door mostly closed, hoping to get this person away before anything artifact-y happened.

"Oh, I'm sure there's one for me," Helena could not resist being a bit cheeky. Even if this person probably worked for the Warehouse, she obviously did not know who HG Wells really was.

"No, really, there…" Abigail was cut off when the door was ripped out of her hand and she was pushed partway into the living room.

"Whoa! Watch where your hands or whatever are touching," Helena cried as a force shoved her through the doorway and into the B&B.

"What was…" Abigail started still leaning against the doorframe separating the living room from the hallway, too afraid to move toward the door.

"…that?" they both ended together. Abigail could not help but look at the woman with suspicion. She'd never seen the Warehouse do anything this forward or crazy.

Helena met the woman's eyes as she straightened out her shirt and jacket from almost getting pushed headfirst into the hallway floor.

"Who are you?" Abigail finally asked as the door shut firmly behind Helena.

"I'm HG Wells," Helena smiled and held out her hand as she turned back from the door.

"I'm Abigail Cho, new runner of the B&B. Nice to meet you," Abigail's voice was a bit off, as she shook _the _HG Wells' hand. "I can't believe you're back," she couldn't help but confess.

"I'm fairly certain I would have been back here at some point," Helena said while waving her hand at the front door behind them.

"The Warehouse does like to have the family all together," Abigail replied.

"It would seem so," Helena spoke quietly, "but I suppose all families are that way."

"Indeed," Abigail motioned toward the kitchen, "How about some tea? I don't think anyone's going to be back until tonight. We should be able to get a room set up for you."

Helena just nodded as she followed Abigail through the familiar yet eerily unfamiliar downstairs. Helena couldn't help but think the B&B was just not the same without Leena. Sometimes working for the Warehouse had terrible repercussions.

* * *

"So you file the artifacts by commonalities so there are less disturbances over time?" Deb inquired as they were standing in the food creation aisle.

"Yes, it was discovered in Warehouse 11 that storing artifacts with similar qualities near one another helped to keep them calm," Artie explained as they traveled back toward the office.

"They do need to be constantly monitored, hence why agents are not just running all over the world retrieving artifacts," Elisa continued. "There is more to being an agent than saving the world."

"So what is the purpose of Regents?" Deb blurted out and immediately began to blush at her own frankness.

Elisa went to speak, but Mrs. Frederic beat her to it, "I think that is a discussion for later," Mrs. Frederic said, holding open the office door.

"Hey Artie, do you know where the Hokusai file went?" Myka called from underneath the large conference table where many piles of paper, books, and files resided. Myka itched to re-organize it all, but Artie insisted he had a _system_.

"I'm not sure," Artie replied blushing, for once, at the mess that was the office area.

Myka crawled out from under the table and did a valiant job of not jumping when she saw four people in the room and not just Artie. "Well, I can't find it and you wanted me to write up a report on Hokusai's Graver." Myka straightened her vest and inclined her head to the others in the room.

"Yes, I did, we need to get those new artifacts cataloged. I'll find it for you in a minute, Myka," Artie said as he tried to usher the regents out of the Warehouse before the inevitable topic came up. He knew Myka was not going to react well.

"Hi, Myka," Deb waved, "Good to see you again."

He was, however, thwarted at the pass. "Deb," Myka smiled, "How are you doing?"

"I'm good, excited to be working with Ms. Lawton on this new case.

"Nice to meet you, Agent Bering," Elisa moved forward to shake hands. "I always hear great things about you, the best Agent the Warehouse has ever had." Myka was barely able to suppress a blush, in this moment, thankful for her long curly hair.

"Well, I don't know about that," Myka replied while they shook hands, "Agent Wells probably holds that honor. Sadly, I don't think we can ask the Warehouse."

"Agent Wells, you mean…" Deb started before Mrs. Frederic smoothly interrupted their chatter.

"I think it's time for your visit to the library at Warehouse 10, Ms. Stanley."

"Agreed, your education must continue," Elisa stated as she nodded at Artie and Myka. "Lovely to meet you both. Keep up the excellent work."

"Thank you," Artie replied turning back to the piles of paperwork in an attempt to find the Hokusai file.

Myka watched them leave and waited for the Umbilicus to shut fully before she turned to Artie, eyebrow raised, "new case?"

Artie cleared his throat nervously and looked at her over the rim of his glasses, "Found it," he placed the file near the computer before he hustled back into the Warehouse.


End file.
